Forced Family 3

E I G H T

"It's not good to run away,"

Turning to meet the man Annika spits in his face catching him off guard as she ducks from his grasp bolting from the room.

Seeing another man in an open room at the end of the hallway she slides into a random bedroom shutting the closet door hiding under the bed.

Ensuring she was completely hidden, Annika holds her breath looking over the clutter that blocked her from being seen under the bed. She holds a hand over her mouth to silence herself seeing boots enter the room softly.

"Zayn?"

Raising an eyebrow, Annika listens seeing if the man responds, his feet turn towards the door, clearing his throat, "In here honey," She can hear him open the closest door cursing when it reveals itself to be empty.

Another pair of shoes enter the room, slippers patter themselves across the hardwood until they stood inches from the boots, "What's going on? Mum said Anna was here?"

She feels a lump burning in her throat, tears pricking her eyes once she hears her nickname from the man's mouth, boots lets out a sigh, "She ran, but she's in the house. Call Liam,"

Liam

Remaining silent until the men had left the room completely, Annika sighs removing her hand from her mouth. She scans the area she'd crawled into seeing a box of ribbons, scattered shoes, a flashlight, photo albums, and strangely a very worn-looking shoe box.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Annika grabs the flashlight first checking to see if it worked, shining it directly on the floor she smiles gratefully tucking it by her side.

Glancing towards the doorway, Annika chews her bottom lip extending her arms to grasp the box at the corner of the bed. From her view on the floor, the room looked tidy, almost like an unused guest room that also became the storage room.

Lifting the lid of the box off, Annika tilts her head to the side curiously peering into the box seeing photographs, letters, a rolled set of papers tied with a string of twine.

Louis huffs throwing the ball he was handed to the floor. He'd been begging his daddy all morning to play with him, and now suddenly he's full of excuses.

Anne offered to play, but he refused.

It just wasn't the same.

Harry frowns from his spot at the kitchen table, he always hated seeing his baby so sad, "Daddy can play with you later Bubba, we have to find Anna right now,"

The teen in headspace rolled his eyes digging the toe of his shoe into the hardwood, "N-no,"

Rising from the table Harry scoops the boy in his arms kissing his temple, "Telling Papa No isn't going to change the answer," Louis' resistance to accepting his Daddy's original answer cracks as tears well in his eyes.

He didn't know that having new cousins would take time away from him or he would've never asked.

Anne suddenly enters the room with a tray of hot chocolate, "Have you found her?" Directing the question to Harry, Louis glumly replies first, "No," he's set on the floor with a kiss to his cheek, "Go find something to do while we look for Anna," Harry commands smacking the boys backside when he whines.

"Dad said that she got to Anne's but they can't find her there," Liam announces, he had taken his Papa's advice and calmed immensely before starting to head over to Anne's house. He's putting his gloves on watching Niall tie Thomas' shoes, "We'll find her, sweetheart. She's just scared," Meeting the oceanic eyes of the youngest, Niall fondly smiles pressing his lips to his cheek, "Sissy is scared, and you're just calm as can be."